


Vigil

by foundCarcosa



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-11-02
Updated: 2011-11-02
Packaged: 2017-10-25 15:42:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 499
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/271977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/foundCarcosa/pseuds/foundCarcosa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The divide between Ireland and Northern Ireland grows with every passing year, but that is no reason to drop vigil. [Past Work]</p>
            </blockquote>





	Vigil

Shane shoved his calloused hands deep into the pockets of his corduroys, hitching his shoulder up to coax wispy strands of rich brown hair away from his face. It was a soft day like any other, but the winds here were more blustery than they were ‘round his place. His skin reddened with every gust, stripping the moisture from his chapped lips and bringing a prickling tear to his eye at some points.

He wasn’t bothered.

The cacophonous noise of the sea blocked out most of his heavier thoughts, snipping away at tangents so his mind meandered more than usual. The spongy moss under his feet giving way to stringy grass in some patches was fascinating for a short time, before he felt the rumbling of his stomach and gave that a bit of attention next. Not once did he think about what he was doing, or why.

He didn’t have to. After enough time, this became as rote as having a pint at Donny’s, or telling Sean to  _feck off_  when he tries to rib Shane about one thing or another, or genuflecting when he passed the old church-house. Second nature. A part of life on the Isle.

There was no discernible line of demarcation here; Shane knew when to slow his rolling gait. His chest tightened, a quick tug to remind him that he’d soon have to turn his head to see his home, because he would be standing upon it no longer.

He wouldn’t look up at first, as his steps faltered and then stopped. He stared down at the scuffed toes of his hiking boots, his hands trembling in his pockets. The wind caressed the scruff that covered his jawline, flicking his ponytail up onto his shoulder. It died away after a moment, like an audience quieting down when the keynote speaker approaches the podium.

At first he only whispered the name, and the wind kicked up again, briefly, as if chuckling. He cleared his throat, Adam’s apple bobbing fretfully behind the collar of his jumper.  _Come now, you can do this. Y’always do, don’t ya?_

Green eyes lifted to survey the land before him, no different from the land behind in topography and flora but… so, so different to the man who now beheld it. Shane bit the side of his tongue, a quick nip to keep his chest from swelling and his eyes from misting.

His invocation was louder this time. A clarion call across the border, a young republic’s faltering yet stubborn attempt at reconnecting with his other half.

But of course, the line that was invisible to the human eye was a chasm to Shane, a rift between the Republic and the Kingdom that would require a much greater leap than this to cross.  
And he couldn’t make that leap alone.

When the wind kicked up again, Shane turned and slowly made his way back to the heart of his home. The weeping sky gave him permission to do the same. 


End file.
